Carmen Ortiz: A Case Of Prosecutorial Diligence Or Legal Overreach?

February 20, 2013

U.S. Attorney Carmen Ortiz introduces U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder before his address at “Protecting Civil Rights: A Symposium on Key Civil Rights Issues” in Boston June 26, 2012. (Stephan Savoia/AP)

In a matter of days, U.S. Attorney Carmen Ortiz may be called to a witness table in Washington D.C. to face the fire from members of Congress who have accused her of prosecuting a “bullying” and “trumped up” case against Internet activist Aaron Swartz.

Since Swartz’ suicide last month, Ortiz has come under the glare of national attention. According to her critics, there are other cases that display the same problems which publicly exploded in the Swartz case.

WBUR’s David Boeri has joined with David Frank of Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly to investigate.

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WBUR: “Her reversal of fortune came hard on the heels of the Jan. 11 suicide of an Internet activist. Aaron Swartz’s death — which occurred two months before the 26-year-old was due to go on trial on charges that he illegally downloaded millions of academic documents from a Massachusetts Institute of Technology computer — created a firestorm that prompted more than 52,000 people to sign a White House petition calling for Ortiz’s ouster.”